Blackburn Rovers' Nzonzi gets three-game ban

Blackburn Rovers midfielder Steven Nzonzi was banned for three matches on Tuesday after accepting a Football Association charge of violent conduct.

The 22-year-old Frenchman caught Stoke's Ryan Shawcross in the face with an elbow in the ninth minute of Rovers' 3-1 Premier League defeat at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday.

Referee Mark Halsey did not see the incident at the time but television replays led to the charge.

Nzonzi's ban will start immediately, making him unavailable for Tuesday's League Cup quarter-final at Cardiff and the two upcoming league games at home to Swansea and away to Sunderland."

Rovers are currently two points adrift at the bottom of the Premier League.